Glory picked up their second point of the Foxtel Y-League 2019/20 campaign after sharing the spoils with Melbourne Victory in an entertaining 2-2 draw at Dorrien Gardens on Sunday.
Following an enthralling first half in which neither side was quite able to break through, Victory substitute Nishan Velupillay needed only two minutes of the second to open the scoring for the visitors.
Glory did not drop their heads, however and it was Charlie Leech who showed great perseverance to carve out a shooting opportunity and then launch a scintillating strike into the net from the edge of the box in the 56th minute.
Six minutes later, substitute Ciaran Bramwell – who had only just stepped on to the pitch – found himself in a similar position and made no mistake with his lethal left foot to give the home side the lead.
But Victory’s Luis Lawrie-Lattanzio then struck in the 68th minute when he latched on to a low cross from Velupillay, ensuring both teams would walk away with a point.
Glory midfielder Jayden Leeder had a late chance to snatch the win for the hosts, but his perfectly-weighted free kick was acrobatically tipped over the crossbar by Victory custodian Matthew Sutton.
Home goalkeeper Jackson Lee, meanwhile, produced another impressive performance, pulling off two telling saves early in the match and another with just six minutes left to play.
Glory Head Coach Richard Garcia felt that the result was a step in the right direction for his charges, but stressed that there is still room for improvement.
“The fitness work we’ve been doing and the way we’ve pushing them is paying off because they’re running out games well,” he said.
“It just needs to be from the start, because there’s still a lack of focus at the start of games.
“If we can start games the way we finish games, then we’ll be heading in the right direction. They’re starting to get the concepts; it’s just a matter of how long it takes them to put it into practice.
“We’ve been talking about the character of the group quite a bit and trying to build those leadership qualities within them. We want to get them out of their shells and to become leaders on the park with their actions and their voices.”
Glory’s next match in the Foxtel Y-League is on Saturday 28 December against Adelaide United at Jack Smith Park.
Match Details
Perth Glory 2 (Leech 56’, Bramwell 62’) Melbourne Victory 2 (Velupillay 47’, Lawrie-Lattanzio 68’)
Dorrien Gardens
Referee: Adrien Liechti
Assistants: Harry Bolan, Lawson Rimmer
Fourth Official: Adam Hicks
Perth Glory: 1. Jackson LEE (GK), 2. Daniel WALSH, 4. Alessandro CIRCATI, 5. Luke BODNAR (C) (17. Nicholas WALSH 57’), 6. Joshua SAMSON (16. Mason TATAFU 45’), 7. Joshua RAWLINS 8. Jayden LEADER, 9. Gabriel POPOVIC, 10. Trent OSTLER (13. Ciaran BRAMWELL 59’), 11. Charlie LEECH, 15. Dane INGHAM
Substitutes not used: 12. Joshua LANGDON (GK)
Yellow cards: Luke Bodnar 9’, Daniel Walsh 32’, Joshua Rawlins 90+1′
Red cards: None
Melbourne Victory: 1. Matthew SUTTON (GK) (C), 2. Zaydan BELLO, 3. Matthew BOZINOVSKI (12. Thomas LAMBIRIS 65’), 4. Aaron ANDERSON, 5. So NISHIKAWA, 6. William WILSON, 7. Lleyton BROOKS (13. Nishan VELUPILLAY 45’), 8. Jack MORTON, 9. Jack PALAZZOLO (14. Nicholas HAMAKIOTIS 89’), 10. Joshua VARGA, 11. Luis LAWRIE-LATTANZIO
Substitutes not used: 20. Marko BULIC (GK)
Yellow cards: Jack Palazzolo 55’, Aaron Anderson 56’
Red cards: None
#OneGlory
Picture courtesy of Tom McCarthy
